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Be sure to check out GLAAD's Blog each week for updates about our latest work to build support for LGBT equality through news, entertainment and online media.
GLAAD responded to offensive media coverage of a trans woman of color who was murdered in Philadelphia. With the help of reporting by TransGriot, GLAAD reached out to several local media outlets, including NBC Philadelphia and the New York Daily News, to ensure that the victim was correctly identified as Diamond Williams, after initial reports misgendered her. GLAAD also ensured that these same outlets reported respectfully on Diamond's vigil.
GLAAD elevated the story of Kara Hays, a trans woman who recently wrote an article for the Huffington Post, discussing how the media sensationalized her story by claiming that she aspired to be a 'Britney Spears look-alike.' GLAAD will continue working with Kara Hays in promoting quality representations of trans people that affirm trans individuals' experiences and inform the public.
GLAAD is correcting misinformation spread by anti-LGBT activists in San Antonio. The claim that adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the San Antonio non-discrimination ordinance is a fabrication that mirrors the false claims made about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act making its way through congress now. GLAAD is working with San Antonio media to debunk claims that Christians would be barred from holding office if LGBT workers were protected.
The media has given significant attention to churches who are kicking out the Boy Scouts after their change in policy to allow gay Scouts. GLAAD is working to highlight the reality that each time a Boy Scout troop has lost its sponsor, several other congregations and community organizations have been prepared to step up and support a more inclusive Boy Scouts.
GLAAD brought attention to a video of a sermon in which the Pastor Matt Brown of Sandals Church in California states that he would punch a fellow pastor who expresses love and support for LGBT couples. The video calls on the congregation to be "the best neighbor" to LGBT people, but states that Pastor Matt cannot control his violent tendencies for other pastors who are not as anti-gay as he is. Affirming clergy in Southern California are expressing their absolute opposition to such preaching.
GLAAD brought attention to the potential lifting of criminal sanctions against people living with HIV. The House Appropriations Committee advanced an amendment that would call on the Attorney General to review laws that unfairly criminalize people living with HIV. This bill has the potential to improve conditions for people living with HIV. Fear of discriminatory treatment in the criminal justice system disproportionally affects transgender people with HIV, leading to less testing and awareness of HIV status.
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